Leaders of ASEAN member States have reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea during their meeting with Chinese counterpart in Vientiane. The regional leaders believed that the East Sea issue has close links with peace and stability at global scale as well as the relations between ASEAN and China and between ASEAN and other partners.
The 19th ASEAN-China Summit to commemorate the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, Vientiane, Laos
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The ASEAN-China Summit ended with the approval of a Joint Statement to mark the 25th anniversary of the ASEAN-China relations; a Joint Statement on the application of a Code for unplanned encounters in the East Sea; and guidelines for the operation of a hotline between senior diplomatic officials of ASEAN and China.
ASEAN counties also affirmed that they attach importance to the relations with China as it is one of the key partners of the bloc and because of its strategic role. It also depends on how ASEAN strengthens solidarity, connectivity and unity and the bloc’s capacity to harmoniously handle the benefits of partners, each member country and the whole ASEAN.
Speaking at the on-going summits in Laos, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc said self-reliance and growth of strength of each ASEAN member country are the decisive factors that determine the success of association’s external relations.
Regarding ASEAN-China relations, PM Phuc noted that the bilateral relationship has been developing robustly, bringing benefits to both sides. He urged the two sides to attach importance to consolidating the backgrounds of the bilateral ties, especially political and strategic trust, accelerate comprehensive and practical cooperation, address all divergences and disputes via peaceful means on the basis of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Both sides should speed up trade and investment, connectivity, tourism cooperation, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and pay special attention to sustainable use and management of the Mekong water resources. PM Phuc affirmed that Viet Nam treasures relations with China and will spare no effort to work with ASEAN countries to develop the ASEAN-China relationship in a more practical and effective manner, to make active contributions to peace, development and prosperity in the region and the world.
For ASEAN-Japan relations, PM Phuc stressed the necessity to give priority to economic, trade and investment cooperation and soon conclude talks on the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP) to facilitate trade and investment in order to double to two-way trade volume by 2022.
The Vietnamese Government chief spoke highly of Japan’s commitment to deploy the US$200 billion initiative of high-quality infrastructure partnership, in which ASEAN will be a prioritized beneficiary. PM Phuc said the East Sea situation is developing increasingly complicated and unexpectedly while touching on regional and international landscapes, thus enhancing intra and extra cooperation, especially in trade and investment domains, is of significant important.
Maintaining peace, security and stability in the region must be the top goal, said PM Phuc, calling on all countries to join hands to guarantee peace, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea and create favorable conditions for settlement of disputes.
Against the recent developments, Viet Nam expects that ASEAN and China will handle satisfactorily emerging issues, PM Phuc said. Relevant parties need to exercise self-restraint, not to take actions to complicate the situation, speed up talks towards substantial outcomes, comply with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, respect diplomatic and legal processes and strictly observe the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and work towards early conclusion of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).
PM Phuc also welcomed the ASEAN-China agreement on the application of the Code for unplanned encounters in the East Sea (CUES) and the establishment of a hotline for ASEAN and Chinese senior officials to respond to urgent contingencies at sea. He asked the two sides to complete the COC in 2017 to mark the 15th anniversary of the signing of the DOC and the 50th anniversary of ASEAN formation.
The ASEAN leaders stressed the significance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and over-flight in the region, settling peacefully disputes based on respect for international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, implementing seriously the DOC, and soon reaching a COC in the East Sea.
They reiterated common principles such as exercising self-restraint, addressing peacefully disputes in line with international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, and without using or threatening to use force. The two sides agreed on the necessity of enhancing dialogues and cooperation to maintain peace and stability in the East Sea, implementing effectively the DOC and soon signing the COC for mutual benefits.
